West Palm Beach (US)/New Delhi: President Donald Trump on Sunday issued a fresh warning to Cuba, saying the island nation will no longer benefit from Venezuelan oil and cash after the US operation that led to the removal of Nicolás Maduro as Venezuela’s leader.
In a social media post made while spending the weekend at his home in southern Florida, Trump said Cuba had long depended on Venezuelan oil shipments and financial support in exchange for providing security help to Caracas.
“BUT NOT ANYMORE!” Trump wrote. “THERE WILL BE NO MORE OIL OR MONEY GOING TO CUBA - ZERO!”
He urged Havana to “make a deal,” adding: “I strongly suggest they make a deal, BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE.” Trump did not specify what kind of agreement he was proposing.
The warning came as Cuba faces the prospect of deeper instability, with Venezuelan supplies now severed. Cuba has been a major beneficiary of Venezuelan oil, but those shipments have effectively stopped as US forces continue intercepting and seizing tankers as part of a push to control the production, refining and global distribution of Venezuela’s oil products.
Trump also sought to cast the US as Venezuela’s new security guarantor after Maduro’s capture.
“Venezuela doesn’t need protection anymore from the thugs and extortionists who held them hostage for so many years,” Trump said. “Venezuela now has the United States of America, the most powerful military in the World (by far!), to protect them, and protect them we will.” The Cuban government said 32 of its military personnel were killed during last weekend’s American operation that captured Maduro. The personnel belonged to Cuba’s two main security agencies and were based in Caracas under an agreement between the Cuban and Venezuelan governments.
Trump also reacted to another social media post predicting that Secretary of State Marco Rubio would eventually become president of Cuba. “Sounds good to me!” Trump replied.
Trump and senior officials have adopted a sharper tone toward Cuba, which has relied on Venezuela’s support for years. Even before Maduro’s removal, Cuba was grappling with severe blackouts, long lines for fuel and groceries, and its worst economic crisis in decades.
Trump has previously said Cuba’s economy, already strained by years of a US embargo, would deteriorate further after Maduro’s ouster.
“It’s going down,” Trump said of Cuba. “It’s going down for the count.”